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Over the years I have viewed many a film, 'Borat' has got to be one of the most ridiculous however. If you take it seriously then you'll be greatly offended, watch it with the understanding that it'll be both sexist and racist though and you and 'Borat' should get along just fine. Sacha Baron Cohen has appeared in many alias forms over the years, Ali G was the first of his many disguises but Borat perhaps the most amusing.
Borat comes from Kazakhstan, to him being a racist and sexist comes naturally; women are viewed by him as inferior and he certainly doesn't take too kindly to those of a different race to himself. You sometimes feel a little wrong to be laughing at it all, at times you question whether or not it's right to be laughing at jokes of this sort; it's very funny though and ultimately the lure of 'Borat' wins you over and has you in stitches throughout the films 84 minute duration. The films true title is 'Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan', this is too long a name to be quoting on a regular basis though so I shall stick to referring to it simply as 'Borat'.
Borat Sagdiyev is a leading journalist in Kazakhstan, he is the sixth most famous man in the country as he tells us. He's a reporter for a popular TV
show in Kazakhstan and is sent to America by the channel in order to compile a documentary about American society and its culture. Whilst in New York City he takes a course in an attempt to understand American humour. He wants to know about everything American for this documentary and makes his best efforts to be as excellent in his approach as possible. Whilst watching TV in his hotel room he stumbles across 'Baywatch' and is greatly impressed by the female form of Pamela Anderson. From here on in he makes it his mission to travel to California and make her his wife. Not quite understanding the concept of the process of marriage, Borat believes that it's a male right to make anyone he wishes his wife and so the journey begins and his road trip ensues in this hilarious hunt for Pamela Anderson.
The film has grossed a huge $261,509,089 worldwide, a massive success for the Cambridge University graduate that is Sacha Baron Cohen. There is good reason why the film has been so successful though; it's incredibly funny from start to finish and never once does this film disappoint in the slightest. Borat is such an amusing central focus of the film, his character is so socially inept and in the location of America never does he really know what sort of behaviour is considered to be acceptable. For Borat everything is always a matter of trial and error, constantly he pushes and in fact breaks down the boundaries of what is acceptable and the film is therefore greatly funny. In all honesty I feel that the Borat sketches from 'Da Ali G Show' were perhaps a little more amusing than this film is though. It was a difficult task in turning what was essentially a sketch of a couple of minutes into a fully fledged feature film. The transition is not seamless, but there are plenty of amusing moments here to keep you entertained throughout the films duration and my belief is that fans of 'Da Ali G Show' should absolutely love this film. The humour has not been altered, it's just more of the same and although it could easily be considered greatly offensive; I personally have nothing but love for the Sacha Baron Cohen character of Borat.
Performance wise, Sacha Baron Cohen is of course very much at the fore here as Borat. There's a cameo appearance from Pamela Anderson toward the end of the film, for the most part however Borat is the man we spend most of our time with and all others become quite insignificant as this one man show unfolds. It's not exactly excellent acting from Sacha Baron Cohen, his comedy appeal was enough to get him further work after this film however as he later appeared in Tim Burton's 'Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street' and provides the voice of a character in 'Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa' also which is set for release later in 2008.
'Borat' is a brilliant comedy film pulled off to great effect I feel. Borat was always my favourite character of Sacha Baron Cohen's. Ali G began brilliant but eventually became tiresome, Bruno was a fairly awful characterisation, whilst Borat always remained fresh and amusing. To make a film of 'Borat' was a great idea and the fact the film has grossed so highly since its release I feel just about says it all. I truly can't recommend this film enough, Sacha Baron Cohen is brilliant as Borat and always he entertains as the confused citizen of Kazakhstan. 'Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan' is not the most intelligent film ever made, nevertheless though it makes for an amusing viewing experience and I for one can not find a bad word to say about the amazing adventures of Borat. Currently working on a film for the character of Bruno with an equally long title, I fear this next film will be nowhere near as successful as the 'Borat' film which in my opinion is perhaps the ultimate in Sacha Baron Cohen cinematic experiences.
Director: Larry Charles Year of release: 2006 Genre: Comedy Language: English Runtime: 84 mins BBFC Rating: 15
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Advantages: Quite amusing in parts, an interesting concept, a short and somewhat snappy movie Disadvantages: Will offend some, a bit too over the top & can make for uncomfortable viewing in parts
Advantages: Quite amusing in parts, an interesting concept, a short and somewhat snappy movie Disadvantages: Will offend some, a bit too over the top & can make for uncomfortable viewing in parts
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